Defence mechanisms

The role of these memories is to help the ego keep peace between the id and the superego

Repression

Where thoughts are kept in the unconscious and are not allowed to pass into the conscious mind

As if that thought had been forgotten

Motivated forgetting

E.g if a person witnesses a car crash but after the event cannot recall it

They do not deny that it happened they just simply cannot remember it

Denial

Where a person acts like the event has never happened

This protects them from unhappy and unwanted thoughts

Projection

Rather than accepting that you are feeling a certain thing yourself you act like it is another person that is feeling this way

E.g if you have cheated on someone you may accuse your parter of cheating

Displacement

Turning unacceptable thoughts or feelings into acceptable

E.g converting anger towards a friend or sibling into acceptable aggression whilst playing a sport

Regression

When, to cope with something stressful, a person reverts back to childhood behaviour

E.g throwing a tantrum or sucking your thumb when you are stressed

Evaluation

There is validity in the concept as we can see real life examples of them in everyday life

Defence mechanism theory has good applications as once told about defence mechanisms, people often feel better

E.g Anna O who had a phobia of drinking out of glasses due to once seeing a dog lick a glass. Once Freud told her about defence mechanisms she could recall the memory and was able to drink from a glass